Machine foe



UNITED sTATEs PATENT oEEioE. y

THADDEUS S. SCOVILLE, OF ELMIRA, NEW' YORK.

MACHINE FOR PLANING HOOPS.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 17,171, dated April 28, 1857.

To all w/zomz't may concern Be it known that I, THADDEUS S. SooviLLE, of Elmira, county of Chemung, State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in the Construction of Machines for Planing Hoops; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings and to the letters of reference marked thereon.

It is well known that in splitting hoop poles the natural inclination of the timber is to turn outward or curve considerably toward the bark; and the nat-ure of my invention is such that it accommodates itself to this natural law.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will proceed to describe its construction and operation.

Figure l is a plan view, and F ig. 2 is an elevation of the machine.

The same letters refer to like parts in both the figures.

From the power I band to the drive pulley H, which carries the driving wheel of the machine L, which drives the second wheel F, which is placed in the position shown for the purpose of giving rapid motion to the cutter O.

It is well known that a heavy blow upon the edge of a straight hoop tends to turn it upon its side, but the obj ect of this invention is to overcome this difficulty by giving the hoop its natural curve backward. For this purpose I use the curved way, the bed of which is marked A, A, while the flange c c stands perpendicular to the bed plate against which the face or split side of the hoop slides to prevent its rolling. The hoop is fed in between the india rubber rollers B, B, the springs K, K, being placed in the intervals to hold the hoop in the curve and against the way. The hoop feeding past the first spring K, strikes the roller E, which being held firmly by the stronger springs forces the hoop against the weaker spring E, which gives way, let-ting the hoop onto the cutter except the gaged width of the hoop between the cutter C and the roller E. The curved way running close to the knife and dropping into the groove 0, in the face of the cutter C holds the hoop off the cutter (after it leaves the guide spring E, constructed for the same purpose) and passing the second spring K, is fed out of the machine by the india rubber feed rollers G, G. The india rubber set roller E is placed directly over against the cutter C, and in passing the smaller irregularities in the hoop the india rubber will receive them by impression, while the face of the hoop holds an even course by its pressure against the flange c, each side of the cutter, while the crooks, knots, or projections will be passed by the yielding of the stronger springs which hold the press roller E against the hoop. The press roller is also used as a gage to the thickness of the hoop by the set placed beneath it above or below the bed of the curved way A. The cutter C, has two planes on which the cutter is placed, a cutter or knife being bent so as to fit both the planes. One of these planes is on the periphery of the wheel while the other is on its face, the part of the plane on the periphery being to cut away the hoop to the thickness required, while the narrow part of the knife on the face plane being used as a smoother. It is also well known that a knife cutting at right angles with the grain of the timber tends to roll the hoop and is at the same time the hardest out that can be made. Vhile the longitudinal blow following the grain of the timber is liable in tough oak or hickory to tear and leave slivers, I therefore, to avoid the two extremes, place my cutter C, as high as possible above the way so that the stroke of the knife shall cut obliquely across the grain, thereby rendering the cut easy. It is also well known that in drawing a small tree partly toward the ground a blow from the aX on the opposite side readily cleaves it. Thus in drawing the hoop backward in the curved way renders the cut of the knife quite easy.

The small drive wheel D, carries the feed rollers by the band pulleys W.

I am aware that machines with rotary cutters have been used for the purpose of dressing hoops.

`What I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

The employment of a concave guide C, 0, arranged with a hinged portion, immediately before the cutters, which is held in place by a spring having less pressing force than the counter gage-roller E, in combination with said gage-roller, or its equivalent, substantially in the manner and for the purposes herein set forth.

THADDEUS S. SOOVILLE,

IVitnesses present:

A. B. GALATIAN, N. P. NORTON. 

